What to Expect From Fed

The Federal Reserve wraps up its first meeting of the year today, and the 2:15 p.m. statement is expected to change little from the last time policymakers gathered.

The Fed is widely expected to continue unaltered its $85 billion-a-month bond-buying programs, which are designed to boost the economy by lowering long-term interest rates. At its December meeting, Fed officials said they would continue buying $45 billion in long-term Treasury bonds and $40 billion in mortgage-backed securities each month until it sees substantial improvement in labor markets.

The Fed also said in December that policymakers didn’t expect to touch short-term rates until it saw the unemployment rate fall to 6.5% or lower, as long as inflation forecasts remain near its 2% target.

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